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About The Various Flavors of Coffee

The internationally bestselling author of The Wedding Officer delivers a stunning blend of exotic adventure and erotic passion that seduces from the very first page—and intoxicates until the last . . . a novel whose mystery begins with a single coffee bean.

A cup of coffee changed Robert Wallis’s life—and a cup of very bad coffee at that. The impoverished poet is offered the last thing a struggling young artiste in fin de siècle England could possibly want: a job. But the job Wallis accepts—employing his palate and talent for words to compose a “vocabulary of coffee” based on its many elusive flavors—is the beginning of an extraordinary adventure.

It’s an adventure that will lead Wallis across the continent and into the arms of two breathtaking women: Emily, the spirited daughter of his employer, and Fikre, the defiant, seductive slave of a powerful coffee merchant, who, in one unforgettable gesture, invites Wallis to partake of both the mysteries of coffee and a forbidden passion—a passion that will change the way he thinks about life, about fate, and especially about love. . . .

About The Various Flavors of Coffee

From the internationally bestselling author of The Wedding Officer comes a novel whose stunning blend of exotic adventure and erotic passion will intoxicate every reader who tastes of its remarkable delights.

When a woman gives a man coffee, it is a way of showing her desire.—Abyssinian proverb

It was a cup of coffee that changed Robert Wallis’s life—and a cup of very bad coffee at that. The impoverished poet is sitting in a London coffeehouse contemplating an uncertain future when he meets Samuel Pinker. The owner of Castle Coffee offers Wallace the very last thing a struggling young artiste in fin de siècle England could possibly want: a job.

But the job Wallis accepts—employing his palate and talent for words to compose a “vocabulary of coffee” based on its many subtle and elusive flavors—is only the beginning of an extraordinary adventure in which Wallis will experience the dizzying heights of desire and the excruciating pain of loss. As Wallis finds himself falling hopelessly in love with his coworker, Pinker’s spirited suffragette daughter Emily, both will discover that you cannot awaken one set of senses without affecting all the others.

Their love is tested when Wallis is dispatched on a journey to North Africa in search of the legendary Arab mocca. As he travels to coffee’s fabled birthplace—and learns the fiercely guarded secrets of the trade—Wallis meets Fikre, the defiant, seductive slave of a powerful coffee merchant, who serves him in the traditional Abyssinian coffee ceremony. And when Fikre dares to slip Wallis a single coffee bean, the mysteries of coffee and forbidden passion intermingle…and combine to change history and fate.

From the Hardcover edition.

Praise

“Capella serves up an fine new helping of gourmet fiction.”—The Economist

“This story is an eclectic brew of such diverse elements as the coffee trade, women’s suffrage, foreign travel and slavery, and is spiced up with a dollop of exotic romance.”—Seattle Times

"The Various Flavors of Coffee is an enthralling story, full of twists and surprises, passion and sex and, of course, coffee.”—Boston Globe

“Capella infuses history and style into a skillfully crafted blend that starts sweet, turns to a rich, full flavor, and leaves readers craving a bit more.” —Library Journal

“Capella’s vividly sensuous command of the arts of both food and romance will attract readers.” —Booklist

About Anthony Capella

Anthony Capella is a lover of all things culinary who lives in Oxfordshire, England. His previous novels, The Wedding Officer and The Food of Love, have been translated into twenty-two languages. He is at work on his next novel.

About Anthony Capella

Anthony Capella is a lover of all things culinary who lives in Oxfordshire, England. His previous novels, The Wedding Officer and The Food of Love, have been translated into twenty-two languages. He is at work on his next novel.